Argentina

General Information flag.png

  • Argentina is the 2nd largest country in South America by land size.
  • Capital City:Buenos Aires.
  • Population estimated:41.77 million
  • Official Language:Spanish
  • Religions:Roman Catholic 92%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 2%, other 4%.
  • Exports:($68.5 billion) Oilseed by-products, vegetable oils, cars, fuels, grains.
  • Imports:($56.44 billion) Machinery, vehicles and transport products, chemicals, petroleum and natural gas, plastics. buenosaires.jpg
  • Industry:Food processing, oil refining, machinery and equipment, textiles, chemicals and petrochemicals.
  • Monetary System: Decimal based. Peso is the primary unit.
~ Five Centavos - 5/100 of a Peso
~ Ten Centavos - 10/100 of a Peso
~ Twenty-Five Centavos - 25/100 of a Peso
~ Fifty Centavos - 50/100 of a Peso
~ One Peso - 100/100, 1 full Peso
~ Two Pesos - 200/100, 2 full Pesos
~ Five Pesos - 500/100, 5 full Pesos
  • Demographics:
Demographics of Argentina
  • ||||=
    Argentina-demography.png
    Argentina-demography.png
  • Population of Argentina, 1961–2003 ||
  • ||~ Population: || 40,091,359 ||
  • ||~ Growth rate: || 1.036% (2010 est.) ||
  • ||~ Birth rate: || 17.75 births/1,000 population (2010 est.) ||
  • ||~ Death rate: || 7.39 deaths/1,000 population (July 2010 est.) ||
  • ||~ Life expectancy: || 76.76 years ||
  • ||~ –male: || 73.52 years ||
  • ||~ –female: || 80.17 years (2010 est.) ||
  • ||~ Fertility rate: || 2.33 children born/woman (2010 est.) ||
  • ||~ Infant mortality rate: || 11.11 deaths/1,000 live births ||
(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Demographics_of_Argentina)

Geography

  • external image images?q=tbn:ANd9GcTWIdY2iE0ia2rFeBHVuhi7IxcN6KPN5nWkmK1sdA4XbSMKiTAZ5A
    Area:1.1 million sq. mi. :about the size of the U.S. east of the Mississippi River
Climate:Varied; mostly temperate, with extremes ranging from subtropical in the north to arid/sub-Antarctic in far south.
  • 4 Major Regions: the fertile central plains of the Pampas, the flat to rolling, oil-rich southern plateau of Patagonia, the subtropical northern flats of the Gran Chaco, and the Andes mountain range along the western border with Chile.
  • Strengths of Geography:
- Close to the sea creating better trading ports.
- Different climate and terrains for better business.
  • Weaknesses of Geography:
- Earthquakes caused by the Andes Mountains damages country and business.

History

The Diaguitas, Huarpes, Sanavirones and other groups of indigenous people were the first evidence of people in Argentina.This dates back from 11,00 B.C. In 1480, Argentina was invaded and conquered by the Inca Empire. Four groups were conquered and integrated into a region called Collasuyu. The most advanced indigeneous people were the Charruas and Guaranies. These people developed basic agriculture and the use of pottery. The colonization of Argentina came from three places, Paraguay, Peru and, Chile.
The first settlement in Argentina was Sancti Spiritu, which was established in 1527. Buenos Aires was first established in 1536 but was destroyed by natives. It was then again rebuilt in 1580. The May Revolution in 1810, which was a wek long series of events in Buenos Aires, established the local government, the Primera Junta.In April of 1815, the Sumpreme Director was ended while the demand for the General Comgress had been summoned. The Argentine Declaration of Independence was issued by the Congress of Tucuman in 1816. The congress continued working in Buenos Aires in 1817, but it ended in 1820 due to the Battle of Cepeda. This occured because of the differences between the Unitarian Party, and the Federales. The Unitarians wanted a strong central government whil the Federales favored a weak central government.


Government/Current political situation

Argentina has a federal presidential representative democratic republic constitution which is where the president is both the head of state and the head of government. Elections take place regularly on a multi-party system. Argentina is currently a reprensentative democracy.This democracy has been used sinced the 1930's, but the coup d'etat have been constantly disrupting it. The president of Argetina is Cristina Fernandez de Kirchner. She is also the head of state. Under the constitution, she is the chief executive of the federal government, and the commander in chief of the armed forces.Thhe to majr political parties in Argentina is the Peronist party and the Socialist party. Some members of the Socialist party do not like Fernandez as their president. they believe she takes money to much money from the people. They also believe that she bahaves more like a dictator.

Culture

~Food
Besides many of the pasta, sausage and dessert dishes, Argentines love empanadas (a stuffed pastry), locro (a mixture of corn, beans, meat, bacon, onion, and gourd), humitas and yerba mate (a common drink), chorizo (a spicy sausage), and Dulce de Leche, a sort of milk caramel jam. Argentines have the highest consumption of red meat in the world.
empanada.jpg locro.jpg
carmelmilk.jpg
Dulce de Leche
yerbamate.jpg chorizo.jpg

~Music
The tango is Argentinas musical symbol. The Milanga preceded the tango and slowly evolved in to it. Argentine rock is real popular with the Argnetine youth . Some of the popular groups right now are, Karamelo Santo, Babasónicos, Rata Blanca, Horcas. To here some of the groups click here.
~Arts
In terms of visual arts Argentina has given the world some great painters and sculptors. Well-known painters include Xul Solar, Guillermo Kuitca and Victor Hugo Quiroga. Sculptors include Graciela Sacco, Rogelio Yrurtia and Alberto Heredia. Argentina is also well known for the beautiful opera houses. Alot of people actually go to the concerts just to see the opera house inside.
untitled.png opera.jpg


~Sports
The official national sport of Argentina is pato, played with a six-handle ball on horseback, but the most popular sport is footbal (soccer).The national football team has won 25 major international titles.The second most popular sport is basketball. Other sports thar are played are, field hockey, tennis, auto racing, boxing, volleyball, polo and golf.



Tourism

The top three tourist attrations are:

3.San Carlos de Bariloche is a city on the foothills of the Andes known for its Swiss-like atmosphere and its chocolate shops. The city with its surrounding mountains and lakes is famous for skiing but is also a great destination for sight-seeing, water sports, trekking and climbing. Many travelers combine a visit to Bariloche with touring through the Andean Lakes area and in particular along the Road of the Seven Lakes.
bariloche.jpg

2. The Perito Moreno Glacier is an enormous glacier located in the Los Glaciares National Park. It is less than two hours by bus from El Calafate while viewing platforms and trails make the visit and the observation easy and pleasant. Boat tours are also a popular way of seeing the Perito Moreno Glacier and many other glaciers and places in the National Park Los Glaciares.
Perito_Moreno_Glacier.jpg

1. Iguazu Falls is situated on the border between Brazil and Argentina. Most visitors reach the falls from the Argentine side through the city of Puerto Iguazú. A train brings visitors directly to the entrance of Devil’s Throat, which at a height of 82 meters is the most impressive of the 275 falls that make up the Iguazu Falls.
waterfalls.jpg


Current Events

Argentina Train Crash
Summary: A train in Argentina crashed in Buenos Aires on Thursday February 16th. In result of this accident, 50 people were killed and almost 700 were injured. Dozens were trapped in the wreckage for hours until being rescued. The Friday following the tradgedy, the government called for two days of mourning and suspended Carnival celebrations. It was said that the train came into the station at 12 mph and didn't stop causing the train to crash.

The price of cooking the books
Summary: Argentina's prices have been rising rapidly. They tried to get rid of using the standard peso and try to buy the american dollar, but the economy collapsed in 2001-2002. Horror at mass unemployment temporarily striked the public’s fear of inflation.



Sources

__http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Argentina#Contemporary_era__
__http://www.argentina.org.au/history.htm__
__http://latinamericanhistory.about.com/od/historyofsouthamerica/p/mayrevolution.htm__
__http://exposebuenosaires.com/argentine-music/__
__http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/argentina-train-crash-50-killed-nearly-700-injured-179029__